Reducing Domestic Violence Through Offender Treatment

This grant program is authorized by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5) (the 'Recovery Act') and by 42 U.S.C. 3751(a). The stated purposes of the Recovery Act are: to preserve and create jobs and promote economic recovery; to assist those most impacted by the recession; to provide investments needed to increase economic efficiency by spurring technological advances in science and health; to invest in transportation, environmental protection, and other infrastructure that will provide long-term economic benefits; and to stabilize state and local government budgets, in order to minimize and avoid reductions in essential services and counterproductive state and local tax increases. The Recovery Act places great emphasis on accountability and transparency in the use of taxpayer dollars.

Among other things, it creates a new Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board and a new website ' Recovery.gov ' to provide information to the public, including access to detailed information on grants and contracts made with Recovery Act funds.

The Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program funded under the Recovery Act is the primary provider of federal criminal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions. Recovery JAG funds support all components of the criminal justice system, from multi-jurisdictional drug and gang task forces to crime prevention and domestic violence programs, courts, corrections, treatment, and justice information sharing initiatives. Recovery JAG funded projects may address crime through the provision of services directly to individuals and/or communities and by improving the effectiveness and efficiency of criminal justice systems, processes, and procedures.

The city of Anacortes will use its Fiscal Year 2009 Recovery Act JAG funds to support a domestic violence offender treatment program. The city states that research has demonstrated that domestic violence perpetrators who receive offender treatment and participate in accountability programs are less likely to re-offend. Cost of such programs is often an impediment for offenders receiving treatment. In an effort to provide treatment to more offenders, and thereby reduce domestic violence, the city police department will use the grant to fund up to 80 percent of the cost of treatment to indigent domestic violence offenders. The objectives of the program are to guarantee the safety of domestic violence victims and to provide treatment to offenders.

NCA/NCF